Cúcuta [key], city, capital of Norte de Santander dept., NE Colombia, near the Venezuelan border, on the eastern cordillera of the Colombian Andes. An industrial city and transportation hub, Cúcuta is the center of a rich coffee, oil, and mineral region. It also has a reputation for contraband. The city was founded in 1733. Simón Bolívar captured Cúcuta in 1813 and set out from there on his march to Caracas. At Cúcuta the constituent congress of 1821 met to draft the constitution of Greater Colombia (present-day Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia). The city was rebuilt after an earthquake in 1875.
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